helicopter — [hel′i käp΄tər] n. [Fr hélicoptère: see HELICO & PTERO ] a kind of vertical lift aircraft, capable of hovering or moving in any direction, having a motor driven, horizontal rotor vi., vt. to travel or convey by helicopter … English World dictionary

Helicopter — Hel i*cop ter, n. [NL., fr. Gr. e lix, e likos, a spiral + ptero n a wing.] a heavier than air aircraft whose lift is provided by the aerodynamic forces on rotating blades rather than on fixed wings. Contrasted with {fixed wing aircraft}. [PJC] … The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

helicopter — UK US /ˈhelɪkɒptər/ noun [C] TRANSPORT ► a type of aircraft without wings, that has long flat parts on top that go round very fast. Helicopters take off and land vertically … Financial and business terms

helicopter — 1861, from Fr. hélicoptère device for enabling airplanes to rise perpendicularly, thus flying machine propelled by screws. The idea was to gain lift from spiral aerofoils, and it didn t work. Used by Jules Verne and the Wright Brothers, the word… … Etymology dictionary

helicopter — ► NOUN ▪ a type of aircraft deriving both lift and propulsion from one or two sets of horizontally revolving rotors. ORIGIN French hélicoptère, from Greek helix spiral + pteron wing … English terms dictionary

helicopter — /hel i kop teuhr, hee li /, n. 1. any of a class of heavier than air craft that are lifted and sustained in the air horizontally by rotating wings or blades turning on vertical axes through power supplied by an engine. v.i. 2. to fly in a… … Universalium